Drive spike



.June 4, 1929. F. H. WILLIAMS DRIVE SPIKE original Filed may 18. 1921rqll- 35 ,By M

Patented June 4, 192.9'.

l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK H. WILLIAMS, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK; ANNIE M. WILLIAMS, COMMITTEE ONESTATE 0F SAID FRANK H. WILLIAMS, INCOMIETENT, ASSIGNOR TO SPIRAL-BOLLEID PRODUCTS CO., INC.,OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEWYORK.

DRIVE srrxn.

Application filed May 18, 1921, Serial No. 470,549. Renewed February 19,1926.

My invention relates generally to drive spikes and more particularly torailroad track spikes, which may be used to-retain the rail on a tieeither with or without a tie plate.

For convenience, I will show and describe my spike for use in connectionwith railroad tracks, but it is obvious that the invention relates toany form or use of spike where the conditions are such as hereinafterdescribed.

It is well known to those skilled in the art, that a spike of across-sectional displacement greater than a certain definite amount,when driven into solid wood, will displace the wood fibers sufficientlyto crush them beyond their elastic limits, thus decreasing the initialpossible hold of the wood on the spike, and the length of life on thishold.

Furthermore, it has been found by experience that this effect is greatlymodified by predrilling in the wood a hole of suitable cross-sectionalarea, and then driving the spike in this hole. The wood fibers are thusdisplaced over a shorter distance, and serious crushing or breakingthereof is avoided. Spikes thus driven are found to have a greatlyincreased life of hold, as well as a better initial hold, when thepredrilled hole is roperly proportioned.

he general object of my invention has been to provide a spike of suchcross-sectional area that it may be driven into' the solid wood withoutthe use of a predrilled hole, and at the same time retain the advantageshereinbefore described in connection with the spike o which is driveninto a predrilled hole.

I am aware that previous efforts have been made to accomplish theseresults as far as the direct upward resistance towithdrawal of the Spikeis Concerned, but all of these efforts, as far as I am aware, gain thisresistance to vertical pull at the expense of the lateral holding powerof the ordinary spike. In these previous devices, the transition fromthe shaped body of the spike, by which the resistance to vertical pullis obtained, to the full sized neck under the head, is sudden and not inaccordance with the increase of lateral strain on the spike, whichstrain proceeds from a minimum at a point some distance below thesurface of the wood to a maximum at or slightly below the surface of theWood. I provide this lateral or transverse strength in a mannerhereinafter described.

The above objects and advantages have been accomplished by thedeviceshown in the accompanying drawings, of which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my spike.

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 3--3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a similar view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a similar view takenon line 5--5 of Fig. l.

Figs. 6 and 7 show, respectively, a side and rear elevation of amodified form of spike.

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view of this forni of spike, and is taken online 8 vStof Fig. 6.

Figs. 9 and 10 show, respectively, a side and rear elevation of anothermodified form of spike.

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional View of this form of spike, and is taken online 11-11 of Fig. 9. i

For convenience in this application and the appended claims, I havetreated my spike as consisting of a body 12 anda head 42, the

f body being provided with a tapered or inclined surface 14, a straightsurface 15 parallel to the axis of the spike, a point 16 and laterallyextending flanges or walls 21. The body is provided with a web 17 whichis of uniform cross-section vthroughout the straight part 15 thereof,and is of increasing cross-section throughout the tapered part 14,starting from a point 18, where the tapered part 14 joins the straightpart 15, and terminating at a point 19, where the tapered part joins theneck 13. The lower end of the web, where it terminates with the point16, is provided with a substantially sharpened end 20.k The location ofthe point 18 is taken at that distance below the wood surface where thetransverse strain produced by lateral pressure on the neck 13 of thespike has been reduced to practically a minimum in the spike bodybecause of the support afforded to it by the adjacent wood. The locationof the point 19 is such that it will come at or slightly below thesurface of the wood into il tl which the spike is driven. By providingthe tapered part 14 in the manner above described, there is secured aconcurrent increase of transverse strength of the spike in accordancewith the increase of transverse strain on the same from the minimum atpoint 18 to the maximum at or about the point 19.

The laterally extending flanges 21 extend lengthwise of the body,starting at the neck 13 and terminating near the extremity of the point16. These flanges, with the web 17, cause less wood displacement than, asolid cross-section of equal outside dimensions (such as the neck 13),thereby avoiding serious crushing of the wood and, at the same time,giving a greater spike surface in contact with the surrounding wood,whereby greater holding power is secured.

In the form of my invention shown in Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, I obtainthe concurrent increase of lateral strength by an increasing thicknessof the web 17 of t-he tapered part 14. This result may, however, beobtained in a number of different ways. In Figs. 6 to 11, I show twoalternative forms of my invention in which this result is obtained.

In the form shown in Figs. 6 to 8, the web 25 of the tapered part 26,increases in thickness from thepoint 27 where it connects with the body28 to a point 29, where it connects with the neck 30. The lateralflanges 31 are likewise increased in thickness from the point 27 to thepoint 29, where they preferably join. This formation provides a V-shaped groove 32 in opposite sides of the spike.

In the form shown in Figs. 9 to 11, inclusive, this concurrent increaseof strength is obtained by maintaining the web 33 of the tapered part 34substantially uniform in thickness and by increasing the thickness ofthe lateral flanges 35 from a point 3G, where the tapered part 34 joinsthe straight partl 37 and terminating at a point 38, where the taperedpart joins the neck 39. The lines 41. shown in Fig. 9, represent theintersection of the sloping side surfaces of the flanges 35.

Y In all the forms of my invention, the spike is provided with a head42, which may be of any desirable shape, but which is preferably in theform of the ordinary square, track spike head.

Obviously, some modifications of the details herein shown and describedmay be made without departing from the spirit of my invention or thescope of theV appended claims; and, I do not, therefore, wish to belimited to the exact embodiment herein shown and described, the formdescribed being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A spike comprising a. head and a body, the body being rectangular incross-section and being grooved in opposite sides, each groove beginningat a point below the head and at a distance therefrom substantiallyequal to the combined thickness of arail flange and tie plate, and eachgroove having a gradually inclined surface at the upper end thereof andextending down to a point approximately midway of the length of thespike and a surface parallel to the longitudinal axis of the spikeextending from the lower end of said inclined surface to the lower endof the spike.

2. A spike comprising a head and a body, the body being rectangular incross-section and being grooved in opposite sides, each groove extendingdownwardly from a point located at a distance below the headsubstantially equal to the combinedu thickness of a rail flange and tieplate, and each groove having a gradually inclined surface at the upperend thereof and extending down to a point approximately midway of thelength of the spike and a surface parallel to the longitudinal axis ofthe spike extending from the lower end of said inclined surface to thelower end of the spike, said inclined surface being bounded byconverging walls.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

FRANK H. WILLIAMS.

